The present invention relates to improved apparatus for the sharpening and/or bevelling of either a ski or a snowboard side edge or base edge.
Apparatus of this nature typically includes a guide adapted to be held by a hand of a person using the guide and moved lengthwise along an edge portion of a ski or snowboard while in contact with a surface thereof. Such apparatus also includes a clamping mechanism for clamping a file or the like (e.g. commercially available cutting and polishing implements such as mill files, diamond stones etc.) in or to the guide.
Until recently, both ski and snowboard designs incorporated metal edges with conventional 90 degree edge geometry (ski or snowboard base edge and base create a flat running surface with the side edge perpendicular to the base edge). Ski and snowboard designs have changed dramatically in the past few years as a result of technological advances in materials and construction. Ski and snowboard side cut and camber are now more pronounced, and although the base has remained flat, skis and snowboards are now manufactured with inherent base edge and side edge bevel angles. As a result, it is now necessary to maintain both base edge and side edge bevel angles when sharpening and polishing to ensure optimal ski and snowboard performance.
The present invention provides an apparatus for the sharpening and/or bevelling of either a ski or snowboard side edge or base edge, said apparatus comprising a guide for clamping a file or the like therein and adapted to be held by a hand of a person using the guide and moved lengthwise along an edge portion of a ski or snowboard while in contact with a surface thereof and which includes a variable angle adjustment mechanism to establish an almost unlimited number of selected angular orientations of said guide and the file in a plane transverse to said lengthwise direction when positioned at the side or base edge portion of the ski or snowboard and while in contact with the surface thereof. This unique apparatus is portable, inexpensive and easy to use and helps to minimize the fatigue and effort required to perform an accurate and consistent edge sharpening and bevelling job, especially on ski and snowboard equipment with inherent base edge and side edge bevel angles as described above.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention the variable angle adjustment mechanism includes a wheel rotatably mounted on an eccentric hub and positionable by a person using the guide in any one of a virtually unlimited number of selected positions to rollingly engage the surface of the ski or snowboard and to establish a selected angular orientation of said guide and the file in a plane transverse to said lengthwise direction when positioned at the side or base edge portion of the ski or snowboard thereby establishing a desired edge geometry or bevel angle. The variable angle adjustment mechanism is preferably integrated with a file clamping mechanism as more fully described hereafter.